


30 days of Ziam

by squishyeyedpayne



Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: 30 Days of Writing, Drabble, Drabble Collection, M/M, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-29
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2018-07-19 00:28:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 8,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7337248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/squishyeyedpayne/pseuds/squishyeyedpayne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A small collection of ziam drabbles, originally posted on tumblr for my 30 days of writing.</p>
<p>Mostly a big fluff collection for those of you who enjoy that!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 1

Liam’s heart is beating rapidly, his palms sweaty. The rushing in his ears is deafening, and he feels short of breath. He’s staring into Zayn’s eyes. See, Liam would never have expected to end up in this situation. He’s been crushing on Zayn since he first saw him across campus two years ago, and now, somehow, he’s pressed against the other boy’s body and their lips are about to touch. This feels like a _dream_ to Liam.

Liam was never one to initiate something like this, and he never thought Zayn would notice him (like, ever) so the probability that Liam would ever get the chance to kiss Zayn Malik was, in his head, miniscule. Still, here they are, here Liam is and _Zayn_ (gosh how did this even happen? Liam’s freaking out) about to _kiss_. Holy shit.

Liam leans forward, taking one last glance at Zayn’s face before letting his eyes close. What he sees isn’t what he expected, not the heated gaze Zayn gave him before crowding his space. Instead, Zayn’s face is screwed up, forehead wrinkled and mouth slightly agape as though he’s about to-

 _sneeze_. 

Zayn’s head lurches forward as he sneezes, forehead knocking hard against Liam’s and Liam lets out a surprised yelp. He raises his hand to examine the damage, and looks wide-eyed at Zayn.

“Shit. Sorry, fuck, I’m so sorry!” Zayn looks at Liam, apologetically. Liam looks back for a moment, then starts laughing. Loud.

Zayn joins in, and the tension is broken, and Zayn wraps his arm around Liam’s shoulders instead of kissing him, and they rejoin the party.

 _Oh well_ , Liam thinks. _Maybe next time._


	2. Day 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: you took medicine for your allergies that made you all loopy

It’s one of those early days of spring, weather just above too cold, the crisp air easy to breathe. Well, for Zayn at least. Liam? He’s having troubles.

“ _Zayn,_ ” Liam whines, hanging on Zayn’s shoulder. “Why are we still outside?”

Zayn sighs. “I’m writing, babe. You know good weather always inspires me. Gotta make the most of it, yeah?”

Zayn’s sitting on a bench in the small park across from their apartment complex, Liam by his side. The notebook in his lap weighs heavy, as though the words he’s written the last forty minutes added several pounds. It would make sense, Zayn thinks, because his mind feels significantly lighter.

“I’m about ready to go inside, though. Wanna move?” he asks Liam, but Liam only groans in response. Zayn can hear him sniffling, almost in tune with the birds chirping around them. “You okay, Li?” Zayn asks, concerned.

“Ugh, no.” Liam rubs his nose with the sleeve of his hoodie, squeezing his eyes shut. “Can’t breathe.” He burrows further into Zayn’s side, humming gently.

“Forgot your allergy meds this morning?” Zayn runs his hand through Liam’s hair, and is awarded with a sweet sigh that tickles his throat.

“Nope. I took them. Took a double dose, actually. ’S just _bad_ today.” Liam groans and sits up straight, grabbing Zayn’s hand. “I _hate_ pollen. I hate trees and flowers and grass and the _sun_. Fuck the sun for making shit grow.” He stands up and pulls Zayn’s hand impatiently. “Get me _inside_ , Zayn.” 

Zayn laughs at him, but stands up as well. He gathers his things in his arm, before turning back to Liam. He nearly laughs at him again, when he sees the faraway look on his face. His eyes are half closed, a soft smile grazing his lips. He’s adorable with his messy, unkempt hair and red nose. There’s a shine to his eyes, no doubt caused by his strong meds (and he took a _double_ dose, the idiot, no wonder he’s looking all woozy).

Liam clings onto Zayn’s arm the entire walk back, smiling lazily and humming under his breath. As soon as they get back to their shared apartment Liam flops down on the sofa opening his arms wide.

“Come snuggle with me, Zed.” Zayn sighs and shakes his head, fondly.

“You’re ridiculous, babe.” He settles down in Liam’s arms, shuffles until their legs are tangled and foreheads brushing. “You remember what the doc told you when he gave you prescription drugs?”

Liam doesn’t even bother to respond, simply buries his nose in Zayn’s hair and exhales sleepily.

“Prescription drugs, babe. _Twice as strong_.”

“Love you too, Zayn.”


	3. Day 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: “person A owns a flower shop and person B walks in one day and slams money on the counter and asks how to passive-aggressively say fuck you in flower”

Liam is standing behind the counter, binding yet _another_ bouquet of roses. He hates Valentine’s Day. Not because he’s single, necessarily (though it’s a bit depressing when countless people come into his flower shop buying beautiful bouquets of flowers for a significant other, reminding him that _he doesn’t have one_ ), but because the special day doesn’t celebrate love as much as it does the consumerist society they all live in. People buy expensive chocolates, flowers, and champagne to celebrate the special night, more out of obligation than anything else. When else would you buy chocolate for thirty quid?

Liam is fed up with binding bouquets of a dozen roses over and over again, so when the bell above the door signals a new customer, he nearly lets out a groan of frustration. This means he’ll have to add another on the list of twenty or so bouquets he has yet to bind.

Still, he turns around with a chipper smile on his face and asks, “What can I do for you?”

The man in front of him must be about his age, tweet five or so, in a leather jacket and tightly wrapped scarf. He’s wearing a heavy scowl on his face, and either he’s not too happy about spending money on flowers for his girlfriend, or he likes this holiday about as much as Liam does.

The man walks up to the counter with stiff, edgy movements, slamming a couple of bills down. “How do I passive-aggressively say ‘fuck you’ in flower?”

Liam is taken aback, eyebrows rising on his forehead. “Well. Not here for the holiday cheer then, I presume?”

The man snorts. “Holiday cheer? Christmas passed month ago, mate.” Liam is staring to think the guy’s a pretentious prick, but then he smiles. And, god, what a smile. It makes Liam weak at the knees, as cliché as that sounds, and he can’t help but smile back.

“Nah, I know. You looked for a second like you could use some cheering up, though.” Liam supports his weight on his elbows, leaning on the counter, finding himself brought closer to the other man in the process. “‘Fuck you’, huh? I’ll have to think about that one for a second.”

The man shrugs, as if to say ‘no problem’, and looks around the shop. Liam turns to inspect his variety of flowers. Did he have anything that could convey a passive-aggressive ‘fuck you’? While Liam ponders that question, Zayn starts up a conversation.

“Neat shop you’ve got here. You own it?”

“Yeah, opened just last year. Business is surprisingly good, considering it’s in the most remote corner of London.” His gaze travels over carnations, hyacinths, lilies, marigolds. ‘ _Fuck you_ ’ in flower. Hm.

“I’m not surprised, it’s really cute.” There’s a certain intensity to his voice that makes Liam turn around, and he finds the other man looking not at the shop, as he’d expected, but at him.

“Cute?” he asks, feeling his face growing hot.

“ _Adorable_ , in fact.” His steady gaze is still resting upon Liam. There’s no doubt about it this time; he’s not complimenting the shop, but rather Liam himself.

Liam doesn’t know how to respond to that. The man is ridiculously attractive, and while Liam’s flattered, he’s never been good in these situations. Hence why he is still single.

“Geranium; stupidity,” he says in place of a response.

“Excuse me?” he finds the other man frowning at him.

“No, not you. Geranium, it’s a flower. Means stupidity. Candytuft, striped carnation, yellow carnation, cyclamen, orange lily, petunia.” Liam rabbles all the flowers he can think of that conveys a negative message, trying to think of how he can make a bouquet of them all. “Means indifference, refusal, rejection, good bye, hatred, resentment, anger.”

Zayn hums in appreciation. “Sounds about right.”

“Well, not all of them really fit in a bouquet, but I’ll try my very best,” Liam assures.

He can feel the man’s intense gaze on him when he works, picking out the flowers and arranging them. He writes a small card, explaining the meaning of them all, to make sure that the message the flowers send is understood. In the end, the man walks out with a vindictive smile on his face, and Liam finds himself wondering what just happened.

He shakes his head with a sigh. Well, at least he got to arrange more than rose bouquets on Valentine’s Day.

 

_(Bonus)_

The next day, the man comes back to the shop, wearing the same leather jacket and scarf, but now also a large smile.

“How do I say ‘thank you’ in flower?”

Liam starts wracking his mind to find the appropriate flowers, but is interrupted by the man’s exclaimed ‘ _fuck it, I know a better way_ ’, and is overwhelmed by the feeling of lips on his.

“I’m Zayn, by the way,” the man tells him and smiles.

 

“Liam,” he responds, dazed.


	4. Day 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt:  
> “Just be you… except, a more… sexy you. Someone confident about their body.”
> 
> “That is literally nothing like me.”

“Come on, Zayn, it’s really not that hard,” Liam says, encouraging. Well, he’s trying to be, but it’s getting a bit difficult. They’ve been at it for nearly two hours, and they’re both getting frustrated.

“Not for you, maybe,” Zayn spits. “You’re _good_ at this, I’m not. You’ve got those loose hips, like that fluidity y’know? You _know_ how to dance. I’m just a fucking mess.”

Liam grins at him. “You like my loose hips, huh?”

“Oh, fuck off, mate,” Zayn says with a roll of his eyes.

They’re standing in front of the wall-sized mirror in Zayn’s hotel room, someplace in the US (after all this time, Liam has stopped trying to remember all the places they visit). Zayn’s arms are crossed, his shoulders hunched and he’s got a petulant pout on his face, like a five year old throwing a tantrum. Liam finds it amusing, if he’s being honest, but can’t let it show (because then, like a true five year old, Zayn will walk out of the room and proceed to ignore him for the rest of the evening).

“You’re not as bad as you think, Zayn. Your problem is that you’re so scared of looking like a fool, you refuse to even try properly. Really, if you just _tried_ you’d be great. Or, well, _decent_ at least.” Liam attempts once more to encourage Zayn, and at least it get the pout off his face.

“But I just… I _can’t_ , Leeyum,” Zayn whines, and leans on Liam’s shoulder.

“You _can_. Just be you… except, a more… _sexy_ you. Someone confident about their body.”

Zayn leans back and frowns, clearly not appreciating that piece of advice. “That is literally _nothing_ like me.”

Liam sighs, and moves behind Zayn. “You said it was all about the fluidity, right? I guess you’re right about that, and the _loose hips_ ,” Liam grins, and grabs onto Zayn’s waist. “Just try to follow me, okay?” Liam starts slowly rolling his hips, his body. Pressed together, he nudges Zayn to move as well.

With a reluctant grunt, Zayn follows Liam’s lead with short, jerky movements.

“Just like that, you’re doing great.” Liam whispers his praise in Zayn’s ear. The music that Liam paused before sounds again as Liam presses play, and Zayn grows more confident as Liam continues to speak slowly to him.

Eventually Liam backs off, simply observing as Zayn moves, sways to the music. It’s not quite confident, still, but to Liam it feels like a big step forward.

“ _Leeyum_ , come back to me,” Zayn whines, and grabs Liam by the arm. He finds his place behind Zayn again, their hips slotting together perfectly, Zayn’s arse against his front. They graduate from dancing to simple, dirty grinding, but Liam finds he doesn't mind.

“We’ll make a dancer out of you yet, Zayn,” Liam promises.

Zayn turns around with a grin on his face. “Good luck with that, babe.” 

He slams their lips together.


	5. Day 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “i was on the balcony and you started loudly quoting romeo and juliet at me”

There comes a point, at _every_ party, where everything just gets too much. That point isn’t necessarily the same for everyone, and Zayn can admit that his fuse is probably shorter than most people’s. The reason he’s standing on the balcony in sub-zero weather, however, is because he’s reached that point and is now _way_ past it. Some girl spilled coke and rum on his shirt, which means he now stinks of alcohol despite having consumed none himself (damn Louis for making him designated driver), and a guy was approximately five centimetres away from vomiting on his shoes. The music has graduated from simply loud to deafening, and the crowd is spinning out of control due to all the alcohol consumption.

He loves parties, just not when he’s sober.

And just as he thought the night couldn’t possibly be worse (he’s freezing his arse of on the balcony with no jacket, cigarettes conveniently forgotten in that same jacket, and he’s sober), some drunken asshole starts shouting at him from the ground below.

“Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” the drunk boy shouts at him, and Zayn snorts. He looks down, and finds it difficult to see the boy who’s reciting Shakespeare at him, because he’s conveniently hidden in the shadows.

“What a light through yonder broken window,” the boy goes on to say, and Zayn shakes his head, disappointed.

“That’s not how it goes, mate,” Zayn calls back at the boy.

“I’m drunk! Can’t remember the fucking lines.”

“I’m fairly sure I’m the one who should be calling out for Romeo, I’m the one on the balcony,” Zayn reminds the boy. He steps out of the shadows and allows Zayn to finally see his face. He’s wearing a ridiculously large smile on his face, his eyes crinkled nearly shut. He’s cute, Zayn notes, and perhaps this is exactly what he needs to cheer up.  
“Screw that,” the boy shouts. “It’s my party, I can do what I want to.” Zayn’s fairly sure it’s not his party, but lets it slide. “But if you’re so adamant I get it right, why don’t you let me come up there so you can teach me?”

Zayn contemplates this for a moment, but decides he could use some company, and shouts an agreement at the boy, who laughs and hurries inside. Soon Zayn feels a hand on his shoulder, and turns around. The boy is even prettier up close.

“So what’s you name then, Juliet?” Zayn asks teasingly, only to see that smile light up the boy’s face again.

“Liam,” he responds, and cocks his head to the side. “And you’re Zayn, but I’m pretty sure Romeo suits you better.”

Needless to say, they don’t get much reciting done, their mouths too busy exploring one another’s. 


	6. Day 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: a drabble that can be tagged as ‘teacher zayn’

Liam is lounging on the sofa when he hears the front door open. It’s past nine, and this is getting ridiculous. Liam _knows_ that teaching is a job that requires a lot of time and effort, that’s something he had to learn quite quickly when Zayn managed to get his first teaching job a few years ago, but Zayn’s been coming home at increasingly absurd times. Liam’s getting worried, despite Zayn telling him he’s doing fine. Liam’s no fool, he can see the bags under Zayn’s eyes, the hunch in his shoulders and his sluggish movements. He’s tired, but refuses to admit it (even to himself, Liam thinks).

“Hey, babe,” Zayn greets him as he flops down in Liam’s lap.

“Hey, how’s it going with the essays?” The reason Zayn stays behind every day is because all his classes has just had their finals, and he’s got way too many essays to correct and not enough time to do it.

“Almost done,” Zayn sighs and cuddles further into Liam’s embrace. “Only twenty or so left, and then I can go back to normal working hours.” Zayn looks up a Liam, apologetic. “I’m sorry I’m not home much, Li, but I promise things will go back to normal soon.”

Liam strokes back some hair from Zayn’s face, frowning. “Hey, no. You don’t have to apologise,” Liam tries to assure Zayn. “It’s you job, babe, I know how much you love it. I know how much it means to you.” Liam pulls Zayn closer. “If it means that every once in a while I won’t see you as much, it’s fine. We’ll just have to make the most of the time we _do_ see each other.”

“Thanks,” Zayn mutters. He’s never been good with situations like these, always feel a bit awkward, but Liam has learnt by now how Zayn works, and hears the gratitude in that one word.

I’m worried about you, though. I can see how tired you are, despite how you try to hide it.” Zayn looks at him, guilty.

"I do it because I’m trying _not_ to worry you,” he tells Liam, and Liam nods.

“I know, but how about you talk to me instead, yeah? Talk to me, and I’ll help you through it. How does a warm bath sound right now?”

Zayn buries his head in Liam’s sweater with a small groan. “Heavenly.” He peers up at Liam with his big doe eyes, and adds, “Can I get a massage after too?”


	7. Day 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: I meant to grab the popcorn, not your crotch, sorry

It’s been kind of awkward all night, Liam thinks as he shuffles on the sofa to get comfortable. Harry invited a new friend over for their weekly movie night, some bloke he met through his art history class, and it’s strange. Zane’s his name. Zain? Zayn? Liam’s unsure, all he knows is he’s never heard it before but it’s suiting because it’s just as foreignly beautiful as the boy himself.

Liam’s usually good with people, and at avoiding uncomfortable situations. It’s not _uncomfortable_ per se, but Liam’s been on edge since he first looked the boy in the eyes, and felt an unmistakeable attraction. Zayn must’ve noticed, because ever since he’s done nothing but flirt with and tease Liam, and _that’s_ what’s making Liam shift in his seat once more. 

Zayn’s sitting just to his left, and Liam can feel the heat radiating off him, warming Liam to the bone. It would be nice, if not for the glances Zayn keeps sending his way, lips quirks up as though he finds the situation amusing. Zayn keeps shifting closer, pressing his thigh close to Liam’s, and Liam keeps trying to put some distance between them. Zayn’s scent is overwhelming, something warm and earthy and spicy – nothing like Niall’s citrusy shampoo or Harry’s flowery body wash. It’s nice, it crowds Liam’s senses, and makes him want to pull the other boy in for a cuddle, but he restrains himself. 

Niall insisted on snacks, just as every other Friday, an Louis had reluctantly left to buy some. Their stock was all out for some reason (read: Niall), and needed restocking. The popcorn ended up in Zayn’s lap, and Liam has been struggling ever since. He’s stuck between leaving the bowl alone, suffering slowly because of the tempting smell, or shoving his hand in Zayn’s crotch every few minutes. 

Unknowingly to Liam, Zayn moved the bowl closer to Liam to relieve him of his dilemma, but Liam was too busy debating between his options to notice. Very unfortunate for Liam, because it means that the next time he goes to grab popcorn, the bowl is no longer there and his hand lands directly on Zayn’s jeans clad crotch. 

 Zayn looks at him with a cheeky grin. “But forward on the first date, dontcha think?” he asks. Liam just blinks at him, too flustered to find the right words to say. 

“I- I was just-” Liam tries to stutter out an explanation, but Zayn puts a hand on his before he manages. 

“Liam, calm down, it’s okay.” He moves their hands to rest on his thigh instead.  

“I was just trying to grab the popcorn and then… Uh, I grabbed your, uhm. Y'know. The bowl, it was- it wasn’t.” Liam’s face is still hot and he’s feeling embarrassed, but Zayn intertwines their finger. 

“I don’t mind, you know. Just take me out on a date first, yeah?” He looks up at Liam with big doe eyes, and Liam finds himself hypnotised. 

“Date. Yeah,” he agrees, “date sounds good.”


	8. Day 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: “let’s try that again. maybe without sneezing this time.”
> 
> This is a continuation on the drabble from Day 1

The party is slow dying down, the guests dropping out one by one. Liam is sitting on one of the sofas in the living room, Zayn’s arm wrapped around his shoulder. They’re heatedly arguing with Louis about who makes the best movies; Marvel or DC? For some reason, Louis seems to think that the Green Lantern movie is the best superhero movie of all time (really, Louis?), while Zayn tells him that he strongly disagrees (a few curses and crude gestures were thrown in, but Liam likes to keep things PG).

“You can’t _seriously_ believe that Green Lantern is a good movie,” Zayn exclaims, outraged. “It makes me embarrassed to say he’s one of my favourite heroes, because people who haven't read the comics _laugh_ at me. The movie is that bad!”

“Oi, mate, you’ve got it all wrong! I mean, it’s like…” Louis struggles to come up with a reason why the movie is so great, and Liam’s starting to think he’s disagrees just for the fun of it. He has to admit, watching Zayn get riled up is a sight to behold. His face is flushed from the heat in the room, eyes shining with excitement and a large grin on his lips despite Louis’ best attempts at annoying him.

“He’s right, Lou,” Liam agrees. “The movie really does suck. But I mean if you enjoyed it that much, why don’t you try reading a comic? Blackest Night is legendary, I swear.”

Louis huffs. “I’m not that much of a nerd, thank you very much. I’ll leave that to the two of you.”

True to his words, he stand up and leaves. Most likely to get a new drink, but Liam doesn’t really care. All he cares about is that he’s now left alone with Zayn, who is looking at him with amusement obvious in his eyes.

“What an idiot, right?” Zayn asks, breaking the short silence.

“The biggest,” Liam agrees. “I mean, anyone who knows anything about superhero movies would know that the Winter Soldier easily beats any others.”

Zayn gasps, and looks with wide eyes at Liam, feigning shock. “I can’t believe what i’m hearing. I will not leave this room until you admit that Deadpool definitely is the best movie to date,” Zayn tells Liam, shifting to sit in his lap to keep Liam from moving.

“I haven’t actually seen it yet,” Liam admits, slightly embarrassed. He’s been meaning to watch it, really. It’s just, so many things got in the way and then he didn’t have the money and, well. Life happens.

“Well that explains it then. Luckily, I know just the way to fix the problem; I’m taking you out!” Zayn announces. “To see Deadpool,” he clarifies. Liam stares blankly at him, in shock. “Sound alright, Li?”

“Uh, yeah. Yeah sounds… like a plan.” Zayn grins at him, and presses his lips to Liam’s cheek.

“Awesome, babe.” Liam barely registers the term of endearment, too focused on the burning sensation Zayn’s lips left on his cheek.

“Uh, about that kiss,” he starts. Zayn nods, encouraging him to continue. “Can we- Can we try that again?”

Zayn hides his smile in Liam’s collar, before looking up at Liam. “Yeah, let’s try that again, maybe without sneezing this time.”

This time, when Liam leans forward to kiss Zayn, there’s no strange look on his face, no nose twitching or eyebrow furrowing. Neither of them sneeze, but something explodes the moment their lips touch. Something in Liam’s chest, maybe his heart or something. What else could cause that breathless, burning sensation, akin to desperation, that overwhelms him suddenly?

When they break apart, they’re both grinning like mad.

“No sneeze,” Zayn whispers.

“No sneeze,” Liam agrees.


	9. Day 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: "Where have you been, I was ready to call the police!"

“Where have you been, I was ready to call the police!” Louis shouts, as Zayn slides into the booth. 

“Overdramatic as always, Lou,” Zayn greets. “What’s so urgent you couldn’t wait until tomorrow? I was rather enjoying myself at home.”

“Doing what, wanking? Please, you had _no_  plans tonight,” Louis says. “Just like every other Friday night. How come I’m always dragging you out on weekends?”

“Because you’re an ass and I’d rather sleep.” Zayn accepts the drink Louis pushes his way, and asks again, “Why am I here?”

“Right,” Louis says, and hesitates for a moment. Zayn’s growing suspicious and is about to ask Louis again, when he just blurts it out.

“I set you up with a guy I know for a blind date.” Zayn stares at him, blankly.

“A blind date?” Louis nods in confirmation. 

“He’s buying a drink right now, he’ll be back any second.”

Zayn is just about to stand up and leave without another word (he can’t believe Louis dragged him out of bed for a _blind date_ , most likely with some guy as manic as himself), but a voice behind his back stops him.

“You’re Zayn, I presume?” Zayn nearly groans, because there’s no way he can leave when his date (really, fuck Louis for doing this to him) has already seen him, but instead he turns around with a strained smile on his face.

“Uh, yeah. Hi.” 

Okay actually, Louis is a fucking _blessing_. Damn. The boy he turns around to face is nothing short of gorgeous, with wide shoulders and a crinkly eyed grin hat melts Zayn’s insides.

“I’m Liam,” he says and extends a hand to shake Zayn’s. “Lou was just keeping me company since you were running late. I think we’re fine now though, yeah?” It’s both a question for Zayn to answer, and a hint for Louis to leave.

“Yeah,” Zayn assures, and Louis claps his shoulder when he leaves.

“I’d offer you a drink, but I see Lou already got you one.” Liam slides into the booth, facing Zayn. 

“That’s alright, you’ve already got me on a date. No need for pickup lines,” Zayn tries to joke. He totally expects it to fall flat, but to his surprise Liam seems genuinely amused, throwing his head back laughing. Zayn just watches as his entire face lights up, and smiles to himself.

Maybe this’ll work out, Liam thinks. Maybe (god forbid, but just maybe) he owes Louis for getting him out of bed. Maybe this could be the best thing that’s happened to him in a long time.


	10. Day 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bases on prompt: that’s all we are now, right? a memory. a faded picture. a failed potential.
> 
> (if you can't already tell, this isn't fluffy cuteness)

They’re facing each other, both slightly out of breath after their screaming match. They’ve both seen this coming for weeks, it’s been bubbling right beneath the surface, just waiting to boil over. It finally happened.

 

Liam doesn’t know how or when they started falling apart, really, he’s just very aware that at this moment they’re both completely _ruined_. They’ve ruined each other. How devastating is it that not even love can protect you from ruin. Because there’s no denying their love for each other — that’s one thing that hasn’t changed once since they first got together three years ago. It doesn’t make a difference now, though.

 

The silence stretches out between them, neither of them wanting to open their mouths and risk another exhausting round of arguing. Zayn scrubs his open palms over his face and sighs.

 

“So that’s it?” he asks. “We’re just gonna give up on this? On us?” He turns away from Liam, walks into the living room to drop down onto the sofa. Liam slowly follows him out of the kitchen.

 

“I can’t do this anymore,” Liam says, once again. He feels like he’s been repeating this one phrase over and over for hours, trying to get Zayn to understand. “We’ve been at each others' throats for weeks now, Zayn. Passive-aggressively tearing each other apart, piece by piece. Can’t you see? It’s not healthy. This is not a healthy relationship anymore, Zayn, it’s toxic and we’re destroying every good thing we’ve ever had.”

 

Zayn won’t look up at him. Can’t, maybe. Can’t face the truth in Liam’s words, can’t bear to see the tear stains on his cheeks, his eyes red and puffy.

 

“We can’t go on like this, living on the memory of what we were, what we used to be. That’s all we are now, right? A memory. A faded picture. A failed potential. You can’t argue that this wasn’t over weeks ago, months even. We’ve been running on fumes, Zayn. We both knew this was coming to an end. I think it’s time to face it.”

 

Zayn finally looks up at him, devastation all over his face. Heartbreak. As though there are any pieces left to break, that hasn’t been broken over and over already. Maybe that’s their issue. They’ve always been so good at building each other up, but now that just means there’s more to break all over again.

 

It’s tragic, really.

 

“I know, Liam.” Zayn sounds just as wrecked as he looks. “I just can’t accept it, okay? You’re such a huge part of my life, of _me_ , I just don’t know how to give that up. I don’t want to give that — you — up.” He gets up off the sofa and walks slowly towards Liam. “God, I love you, Liam. You know I do. Maybe I haven’t been good at showing it lately, we’ve both been really shit at showing it, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Isn’t that worth fighting for?”

 

Liam backs away from the arm Zayn raises towards him. “It is. We did. We failed.”

 

“Don’t- please don’t say that. It’s not over yet. Only if you walk away from me now. This is all in your hands, you get that, right? I’m willing to stay, to fight for what we have, what we _are_. We’re not just a memory, Liam, you’re trying to turn us into one. You’re the one making the decision that this is over, not me.” Zayn is raising his voice, hurt and upset.

 

Liam falls apart, hunching over, hiding his face in his hands. “I know! I know, Zayn, but I’m trying to do what’s right, for both of us. It’s not just about you not showing you love me, it’s about _me_ failing to be the kind of person you need. God, I’ve failed you, Zayn. We’ve failed each other. We’ve messed each other up so bad and it needs to end. It needs to end right now, and if you’re not willing to make that decision, I will.” Liam takes a step towards Zayn. “I love you too, you know I do. Please try to understand that I’m doing this to protect you, okay? Protect you from what we’ve become. Neither of us deserves this.”

 

They just look at each other for a moment. Zayn contemplative, Liam apologetic. Both broken.

 

Zayn pulls Liam into a tight hug, and Liam sobs.

 

“Okay,” Zayn acquiesces. “Okay, you big, self-sacrificing asshole, fine.” He pulls back, resting his hands on Liam’s shoulders. “I’ll admit, it’s been bad. It _is_ bad, and right now it doesn’t look like we’ll be doing any better anytime soon. But don’t you dare think I’m letting you go entirely. This relationship might not be working out right now, we’re in a bad place. But I’ll walk seven times through hell before letting you out of my life.”

 

Liam wipes away a tear. “What do you mean? I’ve told you we can’t go on like this, it’s not-”

 

Zayn interrupts him. “I mean if I can’t have you as my boyfriend — gosh, how I hate that word. It sounds so… belittling when using it to describe what you are to me. If I can’t have you as my life partner, as my lover, the love of my life and the one I always planned on growing old with, then I sure as hell am going to be the best damn friend you’ve ever had, okay?”

 

Liam gives a small laugh at that.

 

“I’m not saying it’s going to work out right away. You’re right when you say we need some time apart, but that doesn’t mean never speaking to each other again, got it?” Zayn pauses, waits for Liam’s response. He nods. “I love you, and I’ll keep loving you as my friend. I need you in my life, any way I can have you.” Zayn’s gaze on him is intense.

 

Finally trusting his voice, Liam replies. “I know, Zayn. I couldn’t let you go entirely even if I tried. I need you too.” He reaches his hand up to gently brush Zayn’s cheek. “And who knows, maybe we’ll find our way back to this, to what we had, eventually.”

 

“Who knows,” Zayn agrees. “But for now, let’s not limit ourselves by any expectations. Let’s just… Let’s just take some time apart, however much we need, and let’s find each other again. I’ll be whatever you need me to be, Liam, as long as I can stay by your side.”

 

“Me too, Zayn. I’ll always be by your side.”


	11. Day 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: "I don't care that it's 2:00 AM, we need pie."

“I don’t care that it’s 2:00 am, we need pie.”

Zayn looks down at Liam, snuggled up on his chest. “Babe, please,” Zayn begs, “please don’t make me go all the way to the store to get ingredients for pie.”

For the last five minutes, Liam has been trying to convince Zayn to run and buy the missing ingredients for the pie he adamantly insists they make (Zayn can’t fathom why, but he’s learned not to question Liam’s midnight cravings anymore). The problem is, Zayn is perfectly warm and comfortable where he is, curled up on the sofa under a pile of blankets, with his boyfriend in his arms. He doesn’t much feel like going out into the freezing mid-summer London rain.

“But _Zayn_ ,” Liam whines. “I’m _really_ craving blueberry pie right now, and we don’t even have _blueberries_!”

Zayn sighs. “Can’t you just make raspberry pie? Or blackberry pie? We’ve got both of those in the freezer,” Zayn tries to reason.

Liam makes a frustrated noise. “ _Please_.”

Zayn looks down at him, dreading what he’s about to do. There’s really no way he can say no to Liam, not when he looks like that. Eyes big and shiny, bottom lip jutting out in a pout, curls falling into his face. He’s been growing his hair out for the last few months — not really a conscious decision, simply out of forgetfulness and never making time for a cut — and it’s making things even harder for Zayn. It reminds him of Liam way back when they met. Well, a few months after they met, when Liam finally admitted that he straightened his hair and let Zayn see it in its natural state.

Liam at sixteen was wide-eyed and innocent, saw the best in everyone and honestly believed the world was a decent place. He believed every day was a chance to be the best person you can be, and Zayn had never met such a person before. Someone so full of hope and innocence. And despite the fact that it’s been years since Liam was that innocent (he proved that much only thirty minutes earlier, hence the craving for food — Liam always wants food after a good shag), Zayn can’t help but soften around the edges every time he looks at Liam now.

Damn Liam for taking advantage of it.

“I’ll even let you taste some,” Liam bribes, and Zayn relents.

He makes a run to the store a few blocks down that’s open twenty-four hours, and he can’t make himself regret it when Liam’s smile lights up his entire face when Zayn comes back with the blueberries.

Only Liam could ever make him feel like this.


	12. Day 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: “we’ve been married for 2 years now and u just had surgery that left u real fucking dopey and u keep telling me that u wanna take me out and marry me”

Liam jumps as he wakes from his slumber where he sits in a rickety chair next to the hospital bed, his senses detecting a slight movement, immediately feeling wide awake.

“Zayn?” he asks quietly, not wanting to unsettle the other boy. “You awake?”

Zayn only groans, slowly blinking awake. He looks around the room for a moment, brows furrowed, before he lets out a small giggle. Liam isn’t too surprised, because the doctors told him Zayn might still be affected by the strong drugs when he wakes up. He expects Zayn to act a bit loopy.

“Hi _Leeyum_ ,” Zayn says, dragging Liam’s name out in that familiar way.

“Hi, babe,” Liam greets.

“Were you sleeping by my hospital bed?” Zayn inquires, smiling widely. “How romantic,” he teases, “almost like you’re _in love_ wi’ me or s’mthing.”

Liam smiles at him, noticing how his words, though mostly clear, are definitely still affected by the medicine.

“Yeah, we’ve been here for _hours_ , I needed some sleep, you dolt.” Liam’s voice is dripping with fondness, his hands gently stroking Zayn’s thigh. He’s glad Zayn got out of surgery well and is finally back to normal (well, nearly).

“Hours, huh? Well, maybe that deserves a reward, if you stay for so long. How about I take you out?” Zayn suggests with a dopey grin.

“Take me out?” Liam asks, surprised. They’ve been married for two years, it’s been a long time since Zayn asked to ‘take him out’.

“Yeah, like, on a date. I’ll be the perfect gentleman, I’ll even buy you flowers and bring you back before midnight. If it goes well, maybe we’ll kiss goodnight. If it goes really well, I just might start planning our wedding already. You’re proper husband material, y’know? Waiting by my bedside when I’m sick. You’d make a great husband. Yeah. Yeah, I’d marry you.” 

Liam is utterly perplexed, but can’t make himself stop Zayn’s rambling to ask what he’s on about.

“Actually,” Zayn says, his face lighting up as though he’d just had a revelation, “marry me. Like, I’ll take you out proper after but I _need_ you to marry me.”

Liam can’t take it anymore, and interrupts Zayn’s monologue. “Zayn, babe. We’re already married. We’ve been married for two years — see that ring on your finger?”

Zayn lifts his hand, staring at it, amazed. “Oh. Okay.” He seems to think something over, hard, for a minute, before adding, “Am I high?”

Liam snorts loudly, unable to help himself. “Yeah babe, you’re on really strong meds.”

“Oh,” Zayn says again, satisfied, as if that answers everything. It does, Liam supposes.

“Y’know what?” Zayn asks, turning to look at Liam, eyes droopy and voice lilting with sleep.

“What?” Liam lays his hand on Zayn’s cheek, stroking it, and the other boy leans into the touch.

“I think… I think I’ll sleep now, yeah?” His eyes are already closing, and before Liam has the chance to respond, he’s asleep.

Liam looks down on the soft boy in the hospital bed, and thinks, he may just be the luckiest man alive.


	13. Day 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: You’re slightly moody and angry because a certain someone isn’t letting you be with your boyfriend. And some jealousy.
> 
> (this is pretty terrible because I didn't like the prompt, but it was requested so i wrote it)

Zayn isn’t paying attention to Louis; something Louis would usually yell at him for, but even he was too busy talking to notice Zayn being distracted. See, normally on Friday nights Zayn would be spending his time inside, wrapped up in blankets with his boyfriend, probably watching one superhero movie or another. He’s perfectly content with that little tradition, he’d even go as far as to say he prefers it over going out clubbing (actually he _loves_ spending time alone with Liam, no matter what they’re doing, but there’s just something special about movie nights and cuddles).

 _Especially_ when he wasn’t even allowed to talk to his boyfriend. Earlier the same day, Louis had stormed into his and Liam’s shared flat, yelling about feeling neglected or some shit like that, and demanded that Liam and Zayn spend some time apart. He proclaimed that he’d come up with a brilliant plan; this entire weekend they would split up — Louis with Zayn, Niall and Harry with Liam, and then they’d switch — so they could enjoy some time alone with their best friends.

Of course, neither Zayn or Liam actually wanted to go along with Louis’ stupid plan, but here they were. Lou and Zayn sitting by the bar, watching as the other three were enjoying themselves on the dance floor. Much to Zayn’s annoyance, Louis and Harry had forgot to mention they would be spending the night at the _same_ club, just not allowed to talk to each other. This lead to Zayn sitting at the bar, grumpy, as he watches Liam dance with strangers.

It’s not that he doesn’t want Liam to dance with others (he doesn’t, but not because he doesn’t trust him or anything), he’s just annoyed — and slightly jealous — of other people being allowed to enjoy Liam’s company when he’s forced to sit and watch.

Eventually, he decides he’s had enough. He ignores Louis’ calls after him when he leaves him behind, and goes to find Liam.

“I’m taking you home,” Zayn declares when he finds him.

“Fucking _finally_ ,” Liam sighs.

They end up enjoying a Batman movie at home, cuddling, speaking in sync when Heath Ledger asks _“you want to know how I got these scars?”_.


	14. Day 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: “Zayn or Liam being famous and the other being a fan and meeting and start dating or something”

Everything about them is cliché. From the way they meet to the way they fall in love, and it’s a story told too many times. But it is also a story worth telling.

It starts one early morning when Liam’s working at a coffee shop (it always starts at coffee shops, doesn’t it?), still half asleep and not at all focused on his surroundings. His eyes are still heavy with sleep, movements sluggish and mind foggy, and he can’t say he’s terribly surprised when he turns around and finds himself running into a customer. A customer who unfortunately has already bought his coffee that is now wetting both their clothes and the floor.

A customer that just so happens to be Zayn Malik, Liam’s biggest celebrity crush.

Does it get more cliché than that? It does.

Because Zayn’s eyes turn from angry to surprised when Liam starts apologising profusely. The encounter is brief because Zayn’s in a hurry, but he offers Liam a spare shirt that he keeps in his car, that Liam only takes after Zayn promises to come back to collect it the day after. What Liam didn’t think of until much later was that this meant that Zayn had to endure his meeting wearing wet, coffee-stained clothes, and he felt a bit guilty about that.

Zayn did come the day after, as promised, to collect his shirt but also Liam’s number.

And it all went from there.

(They fell madly in love.)


	15. Day 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on prompt: Puking in one of the stalls, a guy ran in and started puking in the other stall... in between heaves we told each other our names;i find out it is my old best friend who moved away i 8th grade

Liam found himself one night in the back of a club, puking his guts out in one of the bathroom stalls. Despite what you might expect when stumbling upon someone in this particular situation, it’s not because he’s spent the night drinking and partying with his friends that he ended up here. Well, the _partying_  part was correct, but he hadn’t actually touched any alcohol whatsoever that night, no. He was lucky enough to get freaking _food poisoning_  from that shady looking restaurant he visited earlier that night. 

Just his luck, he thinks, resting his burning forehead against the cool porcelain of the toilet bowl. If he wasn’t so exhausted right now he’d be disgusted. Just as he’s about to get up, he hears a door slamming open and someone rushing into the stall next to him, reenacting the exact scene of his own entry a few minutes earlier. He listens to the guy throwing up, getting more disgusted by this whole situation by the second. Even so, he can’t help but turn his head towards the wall separating them.

“You okay, mate?” he asks, voice hoarse. The only response he gets is a god awful noise and a couple of coughs, and he wrinkles his nose. Just some random drunk dude, he supposes. Not worth his energy. He does get up then, opening the door to his stall and shuffling over to the sinks, desperate to rinse his mouth.

“Feel fuckin’ rank, thanks fo’ asking’,” comes a voice from the stall then. The toilet flushes, and as the door opens a boy Liam’s own age steps out. Liam frowns, a bit unsure of what to say to this boy… this boy with a face he’d recognise anywhere, anytime. A face he’d spent many hours of his youth memorising, staring at in awe. The most beautiful face he’d ever seen; the face of his once-upon-a-time best mate.

“Feel better?” he asks after a few moments of silence, which the boy – Zayn – utilised to rinse his own mouth.

“Sobering up, I guess.” He shrugs, looking at himself in the mirror. “I’m a mess, God,” he sighs. Liam can't help but stare as Zayn reaches up to brush his hair out of his face, scratching his eyebrow in the process. Didn’t lose that habit then, even after all these years. Liam smiles to himself. He’s at a loss, doesn’t know what to do, what to say. He’s always been awful in situations like these – Zayn used to tease him about his fumbling awkwardness sometimes.

When their eyes finally meet in the mirror neither of them are prepared. A shock runs through Liam’s entire body and a gasp escapes his mouth. Zayn’s eyes were always Liam’s favourite. Liam is too consumed with his own emotions raging inside of him – longing, sadness, love – to notice how Zayn freezes completely, staring at him.

“Liam,” Zayn whispers after a moment of staring. “Mate…”

They’re both speechless.

“It’s been a while, huh?” Liam asks, reaching to scratch the back of his neck awkwardly. How do you start up a conversation with a friend, whom you loved so dearly, that you haven’t met since eighth grade?

“Shit, Liam.” Zayn reaches up to rub at his lips. “What’re you doing here, mate?”

Liam snorts. “I’ve been living here for a couple of years, actually. I frequent this place, how come I’ve never seen you, then?” Liam cringes at this strange, stilted conversation. They used to tell each other everything. They used to spend hours in Zayn’s bed, just talking and being near each other. How did that turn into… this?

“Uhm, I’m staying at a mates place temporarily.” Zayn’s eyes flicker around the bathroom, never quite meeting Liam’s. “Just… came out for a good time, I s’ppose,” Zayn mumbles.

“Yeah, uh… Good to see you again, yeah? I should- I think I’m gonna head home, actually?” Liam hates how questioning he sounds, but he can’t help it. He doesn’t- he just can’t understand what’s happening right now. Here he is, in a filthy bathroom of some club where he’d just mutually thrown up with some other dude that turned out to be his long-lost best friend ( _love of his life_ ) and now they’re having the most awkward conversation Liam has ever experienced. 

It wasn’t even _Liam’s_  fault, what happened. He doesn’t understand why Zayn is so reluctant to meet his eyes, to speak to him at all. Just like he doesn’t understand why Zayn stopped speaking to him in the first place all those years ago, after he moved away. Liam was devastated, _heartbroken,_  when Zayn stopped responding to his texts, stopped picking up his phone. Somehow they lost touch, and Liam doesn’t even know what to blame it on. He knows- _knew_  Zayn, and knew that the boy would never hurt him like that without reason. He just never found out what the reason was, and now they’re here.

“Uh- yeah, yeah I feel a bit like shit so I’ll just… uhh, leave. Have quite a way to go to get home and it’s getting late ” Liam turns to the door, throwing one last look over his shoulder. Zayn still doesn’t look at him. “Good seeing you, Zayn. I missed ya.”

He gets home that night, soaked to the bone but not by rain. It’s his own emotions that are drowning him, clinging to his skin, sticky and wet. He can’t seem to force them away, no matter how desperately he tears at his clothes and scratches his skin till it’s red.

 _Fuck_. Fuck, fuck, _fuck_. Why is it so hard to stop loving Zayn Malik? It’s a love that’s been tearing him down for years now, ever since he was old enough to understand that all those things fluttering in his belly when he saw his best mate meant, it’s been tearing him to pieces.

As he falls into his bed he sighs. Once again he’s been reminded of how pathetic he is, loving a boy that wants nothing to do with him.  
______________________________________

(He wakes up in the morning to a text on his phone, from a number he recognises all too well despite having deleted it a long time ago.

 _I miss you too, Li. I’m sorry I never texted back. Meet me for coffee later today? xx Z_ )  
______________________________________


End file.
